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As bandwagon rolls on, Recchi takes stock of Bruins' success

WILMINGTON -- In watching the Bruins this season, and especially in recent weeks, there has been one thing on the minds of fans throughout New England. The question of whether the silver object that has long eluded these parts could finally arrive (without a winner from another team bringing it) is a subject that is being entertained more and more.

Power play results aside, the B’s have given locals little to complain about. There's the seven-game winning-streak, the ability to adapt to their opponents (and do so in winning fashion) and impressive play from two goaltenders who have been responsible for the NHL's top goals against average and save percentage in the last two seasons. Their top line, which has seen inconsistencies from each of its three members at various points of the season, now is firing on all cylinders.

While some view those components as a recipe for a Stanley Cup, it’s easy for success to take one’s mind a little farther down the road than might be appropriate. It's undoubtedly the elusive prize that a room full of Bruins (and a fan base that has made every home game a sellout this season) seeks, but veteran forward/hockey encyclopedia Mark Recchi knows that the team needs to establish its desired identity to bring the town a Cup.

Since the preseason, Recchi has stressed that the team had the capability of not just being a serious contender, but one of the most difficult teams to play against. They had the goaltending and physical toughness, and with added scorers (Nathan Horton and Tyler Seguin), they figured to be more formidable offensively.

Now, with the team having won seven straight (including wins over Vancouver and Tampa Bay) it's only natural for minds to wander and look at the streak rather than individual tasks. Recchi noted Friday that one of the main reasons the team has been as successful as it has been of late is due to the players' ability to not let seven wins distract them from their goal to be as challenging to beat as possible.

"We're focusing on us right now, which is the biggest thing," Recchi said after Friday's practice. "We don't focus on the other teams. We're focusing on the process of being a tough team to play against by the end of the year.

"We're getting there and we're getting more consistent. We're playing harder every night and doing the right things every night on a more consistent basis and it's very important."

Recchi has never been one to make excuses for this team. He didn't do it when the team hit rock bottom prior to its late-December resurgence and he's seen that mentality spread throughout the room. Tuesday's game in Ottawa, which had "trap game" written all over it for a number of reasons, is a game that stood out to Recchi. The team was riding the recent successes of wins on back-to-back nights against the Canucks and Oilers, and as could clearly be seen on the ice, they were tired.

"We're finding ways to win," Recchi said. "[With Ottawa], there was a lot of travel, a lot of work -- two days of coming across the East and the third game in four nights and we found a way to win. Give the guys a lot of credit. It was a tough game to battle in, and we found a way and we battled."

Three of the teams the Bruins have beaten on their current streak currently figure to be in the playoffs. They've got a couple more on tap in the Penguins Saturday and the Canadiens Tuesday. After that, however, the B's will have a six-game stretch in which only one of their opponents, the seventh-place Predators in the Western Conference, currently is in line for a playoff spot.

That kind of talk is exactly what Recchi says he and the team are blocking out, as the ultimate goal of the season isn't to have a long win streak.

"Our focus is pretty good," he said. "We're working on something here, and it's a process -- it's a game-by-game process. We don't look ahead at all. We're looking towards Pittsburgh, and we've got a couple of days off before we head up to Montreal. It will just be another game and try to get to the point where we want to be."

Seven straight wins isn't the extent of where the Bruins want to be. They'll gladly take it right now, but Recchi's been around long enough to know there’s more to it than that.

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